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During the interview, A-Swe indicated the main packaging drivers as being (1) to protect the product, (2) to provide convenience and user friendliness and (3) to be an efficient and economical packaging. A perspective that was similar to what Gerding et al. (1996) reported. For them, packaging is conditioned by the product requirements and the consumer demands. These main aspects are really the core of a packaging process that successfully serves the consumer. During the course of results and discussion, they will take center stage and be referred to several times.

As mentioned in one of the first sections of this research, past perspectives are important to reveal how packaging has been evolving in the last decades, not in terms of appearance, but core functionality. The thrive for more convenient, lightweight, safe and sustainable packaging has been present at least since the sixties. During the interviews it was evident how these still remain very important for packaging developers and food companies, therefore they are further explored in this section.

4.2.1.1. Convenience

Convenience has been mentioned as one of the main trends for the future, both in the literature research and by the interviewees. What results showed is that the meaning of convenience is broad and can be approached from several angles. It can mean easy opening, easy closure, easy storage, single portions, multipacks, active packaging, and “on-the-go” consumption, amongst others. To the consumer, convenience is generally translated into packaging that saves time and makes their life easier across a multitude of life demands.

During the interviews, D-UK believed that convenience could be a mixture of things. It could mean “occasion- specific”; “It could be convenience at the point of purchase or convenience when the consumer is drinking the product”. Thus the need for companies to do consumer research, to really understand what choices the consumer is looking for and how those translate into specific circumstances.

At Diageo, research is being conducted on how consumers will experience different occasions and how those will lead to new packaging formats. In the future, the company expects to have a very distinctive range of products targeted at a specific occasion (D-

UK).

M-UK also mentioned occasions and how the consumer is looking for moments (and

food) to indulge on; “Certain people see it as a special occasion because it is the end of the week so they want to have a special dessert. We are seeing more trends on those areas, definitely”. These experiences can also relate to the health trend presented during the literature research.

One of these occasions is the “on-the-go” consumption, where single portions are the main offer. M-UK is also focusing on this trend. “On people being able to eat on the go, to be able to pick something up and quickly eat and have it as a snack”. That is an area Müller is trying to increase and consumers will see more of in the future.

In an interview, single portions were mentioned as being convenient, by default (M-

UK). Not only providing the “exact” amount of product for a specific circumstance, but

also the easiness of using it only one time, without the worry of re-closing it, storing it and/or re-opening it.

If food consumption is expected to increase via the use of a convenient single portion, then consumer health, food waste and sustainability will also be affected.

4.2.1.2. Health

During the literature research, health trends and nutritional recommendations raised a question on how the consumer might behave in order to become healthier.

In the UK, the government has developed the Eatwell plate. A campaign which highlights the different types of food and healthy proportions for the average consumer. To achieve the ideal Eatwell plate consumption, a consumer has to develop new eating habits which translate into the purchase of more fruit and vegetables. As these products are mostly stored in the refrigerator, the appliance is required to offer sufficient amount of space for the accommodation of such items (NHS, 2013).

An example can be given: to achieve the Eatwell plate recommendations, an individual should eat at least five portions of 80g of a variety of fruit and vegetables (UKGovernment, 2014). This is 400g a day and 2kg a week. Depending on how many meals the consumer prepares at home, this suggests that a regular consumer could have to store 2kg of fruit and vegetables in their refrigerator.

As M-UK pointed out during the interview, the refrigerator should have more space:

“Especially because fruit and vegetables are now also stored in the fridge. I think that space is always too small, so when I do my weekly shopping, certainly in the summer months, I cannot put all inside, on the bottom. They have to go on the shelves. It just feels like everything that you buy in the supermarket goes into the fridge so it needs to be bigger to take all of this”.

4.2.1.3. Sustainability and the Environment

When it comes to understanding the effect of packaging on the environment, there are different opinions: from the packaging professionals and the consumers.

For consumers, packaging might be seen as a waste of materials and energy, without a purpose. During the interview, MS-UK mentioned that the packaging industry “battle” is for the consumer to perceive it as a resource and not as a waste.

When looking further into details, primary and secondary packaging combined, for all goods and foods, only account for 3% of the UK’s household total environmental footprint, while production of household goods and food production account for 34% and 8%, respectively (Figure 12). In addition, as mentioned in the theoretical framework, 38% of milk energy consumption is at home, during refrigeration. By considering this information it is clear that food packaging is not the main barrier to ensuring a sustainable household.

Figure 11. UK Household total environmental footprint. Source: INCPEN (2000)

Packaging professionals have a different view on packaging and sustainability. They believe that in ten years, sustainability and food safety/security will dominate as trends, while cost becomes increasingly less important. This corroborates with the literature research results and the message from the interviewees. In particular, D-UK stated “the consumer is aware of materials used and environmental issues. I do not think it is a blocker to purchase yet, but is increasing and becoming more important”.

PN-NL mentioned that the current younger generation considers sustainability as a

given. To this consumer, future products have to be sustainable. “As they see it as a requirement, companies have to either do them in a sustainable way or not do them at all”. This links to the reported information that, in 2025, the main shoppers will be Millennials who see packaging materials as a very important product feature. They will rely on retailers to provide the best sustainable packaging and lead them to sustainable purchases. As most consumers, they cannot clearly differentiate between a product and its packaging therefore, products that do not comply with the future environmental expectations might not be supported by this consumer and possibly become unsuccessful.

On the other hand, concerns about resource scarcity and food shortages were presented in the literature review. MS-UK mentioned water consumption and management as a future challenge “because water is in everything, from food production to plastic production. We use water to cool plants, to make plastic, so if we start not having water a lot of this stops. A lot of our world stops”.

The negative implications of climate change on the world and packaging are hard to predict and a challenge to anticipate. Still they could transform the predictions described in this research in a radical way.

4.2.1.4. Food waste

In the past, the relation between food and packaging was very much focused on the protection and safety of the food (Han, 2014a). Today, food wastage has become an avoidable need, as feeding the world population will become a future challenge combined with the decrease of natural resources.

For PN-Swe around 25% of all wasted food could be related with packaging. Either to the expiry date, which the participant refers to as being static, and also to a packaging being unable to reclose properly. Therefore, packaging could play an important role in the future of food waste reduction. Another packaging professional relates the expiry date improvement to better food/packaging education of the consumer. The government or the supermarkets should take on this task, but also food companies suggesting the way they currently set expiry dates should be changed (PN-NL).

A participant says the consumers do not seem to trust their instincts and taste as much as the “use by date” or “best before” date. In the UK, this awareness issue is being worked upon. M-UK says the consumer is being informed of the positive role packaging can have on saving food is in process. In addition, the use of more single portions is a solution for reducing food waste. O-Swe participant said this topic is being discussed at the moment and that, despite being challenging to decide on which approach to take, smaller packaging would probably help.

As this topic is very much related with single portions and external packaging trends, further insights are explored in the section regarding packaging trends (4.2.2.).

4.2.1.5. Demographics

Since the beginning of the millennia, demographic changes have been addressed as a driver for packaging convenience (Gerding et al., 1996, Sonneveld, 2000).

To some interviewees, the fact that in the future, the older population will represent a bigger portion of the population, is not as much of a concern as any other consumer need. O-Swe mentioned that despite the design of easier to open products being beneficial for the older population, it is also for all of the remaining consumers. “All of us would like to have [packaging] a little bit easier to open” wherefore it is something companies strive for, without targeting any particular consumer group.

For D-UK and F-Swe, packaging design is also not considering the aging population matter, at least for now.

4.2.1.6. Personalization and online shopping

During the literature research, personalization was mentioned as a future consumer trend. D-UK agrees that product customization will increase, but the way a product might be personalized, might differ from today’s outlook. For instance, in the future, a package can easily be adapted to the consumer in question by using technology, such as by sending specific messages through an interactive label (D-UK). Technology can influence packaging personalization significantly. By using online shopping, a consumer will make available his/her preferences and wishes in a personal database, which can be used to adapt the product quantity to the exact needs (Berry et al., 2007).

To M-UK, e-commerce will definitely play a major role in the future, although how that translates into something that is going to influence food is uncertain. Nevertheless, for this expert, being agile and adaptable is a must-have attitude for the future.

Participants mentioned that online shopping would allow more diversity and variety of products and sizes for all types of families and needs. This platform would allow products to be sold and purchased at different occasions and ways.

The same perspective was pointed out in the 2022 scenario, in the previous chapter. It was explained that online shopping would become more frequent leading to an increased variety of products in smaller packaging. At the same time, it would also save time and the environment, as no more trips to the supermarket would be needed (TP-

Swe). Three thousand consumers share a similar view, as for them packaging should

save time and make their lives easier (Caner and Pascall, 2010).

F-Swe stated that lack of contact with the product could affect the purchase. As the

consumer does not touch and analyse the product up-close, his participation might not be as active. This perspective considers the current e-commerce structure, but the introduction of new technologies, such as printed electronics, could add a dynamic feel to the purchase.

Nevertheless, the majority of today’s consumer chooses their products on the point of purchase based on appearance, packaging and transparency (Ragaert et al., 2004). How online shopping will affect this situation is still unclear.

O-Swe mentioned that the new packages being developed are focused on improving

efficiency, without considering the role online shopping might play. In this company the discussion has not yet started.

Personalization also raises the question of how logistics might be affected by so many packaging possibilities and adaptations taking place at the same time. Would not standardization be a more suitable approach?

For MS-UK, if the world is to become more globalized, and if things remain the same, then we will probably need different formats to satisfy the local consumer. “Therefore a shorter supply chain.I think probably what we will see is regionality: varieties of products that are only available at certain times of the year rather than all the year around.”

In contrast, others interviewees question if there is a real challenge between standardizing and customizing the appearance of products. For TP-Swe, current consumers do not purchase products mainly based on their appearance. Nevertheless, research presented on the literature review contradicts this opinion.

When it comes to understanding how products will be in the future, a recurrent perspective was noticed in the literature review. There will be a shift from products to services that allow a deeper product personalization. In the future, consumers will have a different type of brand relationship. How that might influence food packaging and the refrigerator is explored in the section “Packaging Trends” (4.2.2.) and “Refrigerator” (4.3.).

4.2.1.7. What implications can these trends bring to the refrigerator?

During the literature research consumers mentioned how the refrigerator should be able to “communicate” with them so they would not have that preoccupation.

Regarding “on-the-go” foods and how they will be related with the refrigerator is uncertain. Although, if they are “on-the-go” they probably will not be stored in the refrigerator. They will be bought and eaten in the moment. The new refrigerator should therefore focus on the foods which are not “on-the-go”; on the “eat at home” meals or ingredients that are bought and have to be stored. And, if a consumer prefers to store frozen vegetables instead of fresh, then the freezer would be the section in need of more space.

Millennials expect retailers to guide them to a better, sustainable product. With increased awareness it is very likely that home appliances manufacturers would be pressured to only offer sustainable options. To ensure a product being as sustainable as it can be, a retailer will potentially have to consider all of the consumer-package steps, including home storage. The best synergy between both, the package and the refrigerator will have to be assured not only to improve consumer satisfaction, but also to reduce household energy consumption.

With increased need for personalization, more variety and dimensions will appear due to online shopping. However, a database can be used to determine what goes inside helping in the personalization of the refrigerator.